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“Smart” Residential Thermostats: Capabilities, Operability and Potential Energy Savings

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“Smart” Residential Thermostats: Capabilities, Operability and Potential Energy Savings “Smart” Residential Thermostats: Capabilities, Operability and Potential Energy Savings December 2012 Gilbert A. McCoy, PE Energy Systems Engineer 905 Plum Street SE Olympia, WA 98504-3165 www.energy.wsu.edu (360) 956-2086 Copyright © 2012 Washington State University Energy Program WSUEEP12-080 ii Contents Overview ............................................................................................................................... 1 Heating and Cooling System Types ............................................................................................. 1 Heating and Cooling System Setpoints ....................................................................................... 2 Benefits of Using Programmable Thermostats ....................................................................... 3 Approaches to Influence Consumer Behavior ............................................................................ 4 Smart Thermostat Capabilities ............................................................................................... 5 Dashboard Home Energy Displays (HEDs) .................................................................................. 6 Interview-Based Programming.................................................................................................... 6 Built-In Energy Optimization or Adaptive Learning Capabilities of Available Products.............. 7 ecobee ..................................................................................................................................... 7 Emme (Energy Management Made Easy) ............................................................................... 8 Nest .......................................................................................................................................... 8 Venstar ..................................................................................................................................... 9 Mountain Logic ........................................................................................................................ 9 EcoFactor ................................................................................................................................. 9 Home Energy Automation with Interconnection to the Smart Grid ....................................... 10 New Features of Advanced Metering ....................................................................................... 10 Disadvantages of Advanced Metering ...................................................................................... 11 Conclusions ......................................................................................................................... 11 Ongoing Smart Thermostat Demonstration Programs ............................................................. 13 References .......................................................................................................................... 14 Appendix #1 Smart Thermostat Performance Characteristics ............................................. A-1 Appendix #2 Smart Thermostats With Heat Pump Capabilities ........................................... A-3 iii iv Overview A study by Pike Research indicates that the home energy management sector is struggling.1 In part, this may be because smart thermostats and the smart grid have been over-hyped. Other studies state that no “killer application” has yet been found.2 Utilities (and regulators) are unsure of the magnitude and persistence of potential energy savings promised with the use of smart thermostats and may view them as being a poor value proposition. To make smart thermostats work, homeowners need to invest in additional tools – home energy displays, software and sensors – and properly install them (or hire a contractor to install them) to obtain real-time feedback on their energy consumption.3 Yet, some estimate that approximately 6 million U.S. households (5 percent of the total) will use some type of home energy management device by 2015.3 Following is a brief discussion of the baseline and potential for increased use of smart thermostats in the Northwest. The discussion contains a summary of smart thermostat capabilities, addresses the energy savings potential of utility-sponsored residential behavior change approaches and smart thermostat adoption programs, and provides an overview of the comfort and appliance control features that might be expected in future smart grid programs. Heating and Cooling System Types NEEA recently sponsored a “Residential Building Stock Assessment.” This 2012 study, conducted by Ecotope, consisted of 1,406 field surveys of single-family homes throughout the Northwest region (Washington, Oregon, Idaho and western Montana). Average house size was 2,006 square feet. Ecotope examined the HVAC system in each home and found that electricity is the primary source of space heating for 34.2 percent of all homes, or approximately 1.37 million of the region’s 4,023,937 single-family residences.4 The distribution of primary heating sources by heating system type is given in Table 1.4 Ecotope found that 465 homes, or 33.1 percent of the total population surveyed, listed wood or pellet heating stoves as their primary or secondary heating system. An additional 88 homes listed fireplaces as their secondary heating source.4 This suggests that approximately 39.4 percent of the region’s homes are wholly or partially reliant on wood or pellet stoves and fireplaces. Electrical energy savings from improved space heating comfort control (smart thermostats) are greatest in the 245,460 homes that use forced-air electric furnaces as their primary heat source. Zone control strategies are typically used in the other homes with electric-resistance heat (mostly baseboard and some wall heaters). Electrical energy savings potential from smart thermostats are diminished in homes with heat pumps unless the savings 1 are from smart heat pump controls, and in homes where backup wood or pellet stoves have significant use. Table 1. Heating System Types in the Northwest Heating System Type Percentage Count Forced Air Furnace, non-electric 48.0 702 Forced Air Furnace, electric 6.1 Ductless Heat Pump 1.4 25 Baseboard Heater 12.3 209 Boiler 5.1 83 Fireplace 0.1 2 Ground Source Heat Pump 0.8 14 Air Source Heat Pump 11.4 166 Dual Fuel Heat Pump 1.2 17 Heating Stove 12.8 201 Plug-In Heater 1.0 14 Totals: 100.2 1,433 Note: 46 of the 1,406 homes in the survey listed two primary heating systems, usually heating separate zones. Source: NEEA Residential Building Stock Assessment, 2012 The Ecotope study found that about 42.3 percent of all residences region-wide have cooling equipment. The percentage varies widely by cooling zone (as defined in the Northwest cooling zone map by the Northwest Power and Conservation Council, http://www.nwcouncil.org/energy/rtf/zones/regional_cool.pdf). About 31.6 percent of homes in Zone 1 have cooling equipment and 85.4 percent of the residences in Zone 3 have cooling capability.4 About 23 percent of all primary cooling systems consist of single zone package terminal air conditioners (PTACs), evaporative coolers, or window air conditioners.4 Approximately 40 percent of the residences with cooling systems have central air conditioning. This equates to about 679,000 homes. The remaining homes are cooled by ground source, air source, or ductless heat pumps.4 Heating and Cooling System Setpoints The average heating thermostat setpoint was 68.7°F, with little variation by state.4 About 69 percent of homes adjusted the thermostat setpoint down during sleeping hours (night setback), with the average setback being 6.5°F.4 This setback is automatic when entered into programmable thermostats. In other cases, the occupant manually adjusts the thermostat on a nightly basis.4 The average cooling thermostat setpoint was 73.5°F, with an average thermostat “setup” of 9.6°F, 4 which refers to the temperature adjustment during the day when the house is 2 unoccupied. Only 10 percent of the households with cooling made or programmed adjustments to their cooling patterns.4 Ecotope states that their survey questions may not have captured the percentage of homes that turned the air conditioning off during working hours. Benefits of Using Programmable Thermostats Programmable thermostats are the baseline technology for residential temperature control. They are in widespread use and are required for new construction by the energy codes. Programmable thermostats allow users to enter a heating or cooling temperature setpoint and a night setback or setup temperature for each day of the week. Most devices contain an “override” and also allow the user to specify a vacation – or “away” – setting. Comfort control is thus automatic, unless the user elects to change the settings. Programmable thermostats include a warm-up feature that starts the HVAC system in advance so the area of the building that is controlled by the thermostat is at the desired temperature at the prescribed time. Some of the more sophisticated thermostats also provide “intelligent recovery” that will pre-heat the home based on the outside air temperature; this is done early enough so the setpoint can be achieved by the time set by the user. In the case of heat pumps, intelligent recovery implies that the setpoint is achieved at the preset time with as little use of the auxiliary heat as possible. The Washington State Energy Code requires seven-day comfort control with four control periods per day (e.g., wake, day,
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